Chair assembly

ABSTRACT

A chair assembly includes a chair unit having a seat frame, a seat member attached to the seat frame, and a leg support. The seat frame includes front and rear ends, and left and right first arms extending from the front to rear ends. The leg support includes a leg frame that has left and right second arms which are connected pivotally and respectively to the left and right first arms at the vicinity of the front end of the seat frame, and a leg rest member attached to the leg frame. The leg support is movable between a folded position, in which the leg rest member is superimposed on the seat member, and an unfolded position, in which the leg rest member extends forwardly from the seat member.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to a chair assembly, more particularly to a chairassembly with a leg support.

2. Description of the Related Art

A conventional chair, such as a swing chair, includes a seat portion,and a backrest portion extending upwardly from a rear side of the seatportion. However, the length of the seat portion usually supports onlythe buttocks and the upper leg portions of a user. The lower legportions of the user are without support, and are hung freely. Theconventional chair is not configured to provide support and comfort tothe lower leg portions of the user.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a chairassembly that can provide leg support to thereby provide comfort tousers and that is easy to use.

According to this invention, a chair assembly comprises a chair unitincluding a seat frame, a seat member, and a leg support. The seat frameincludes front and rear ends, and left and right first arms extendingfrom the front to rear ends. The seat member is attached to the seatframe. The leg support includes a leg frame having left and right secondarms which are connected pivotally and respectively to the left andright first arms at the vicinity of the front end, and a leg rest memberattached to the leg frame. The leg support is movable between folded andunfolded positions. In the folded position, the leg rest member issuperimposed on the seat member. In the unfolded position, the leg restmember extends forwardly from the seat member.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent in the following detailed description of the preferredembodiment with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the preferred embodiment of a chairassembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view of the preferred embodiment,illustrating a leg support in a folded position;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of the preferred embodiment,illustrating how a leg frame is connected to a seat frame;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary top sectional view of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 2, but illustrating the leg support inan unfolded position;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5, but illustrating the leg support inan extended position;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 4, but with the leg support in theunfolded position; and

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but with leg supports of left andright chair units in the unfolded and extended positions, respectively.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, the preferred embodiment of a chair assemblyaccording to the present invention is shown to comprise a swing supportframe 1, a swinging unit 2, and left and right chair units 4.

The swing support frame 1 includes a pair of leg units 11 mounted on theground, and a top horizontal bar 12 connected between the leg units 11.Each of the leg units 11 is substantially A-shaped. The top horizontalbar 12 has left and right rings 121 sleeved thereon.

The swinging unit 2 is hung on the top horizontal bar 12, and is movablein a front-to-rear direction. The swinging unit 2 includes a pair ofleft and right hanging frames 21 hung on the top horizontal bar 12, anda rear cross bar 23. Each of the hanging frames 21 includes a fronthanging rod 211 and a rear hanging rod 212, both of which are hooked toa corresponding one of the rings 121. The rear cross bar 23interconnects lower ends of the rear hanging rods 212 of the left andright hanging frames 21.

Each of the left and right chair units 4 is installed on the swingingunit 2, and includes a seat frame 41, a seat member 42, and a legsupport 5. The seat frame 41 is connected to the swing unit 2, andincludes front and rear ends, left and right first arms 401 extendingfrom the front to rear end of the seat frame 41, a rear link 402interconnecting rear ends of the first arms 401 and connected to therear cross bar 23, and a front link 403. The first arms 401 extendupwardly from the front end to the rear end of the seat frame 41, andare connected to the rear link 402 at the vicinity of the rear end ofthe seat frame 41. Front ends 411 of the first arms 401 are connected toa top surface of the front link 403 so as to be supported by the same.

An intermediate seat member 3 is connected between middle portions ofthe front link 403 and the rear link 23, and is disposed between theleft and right chair units 4. In this embodiment, the intermediate seatmember 3 is a small table.

The seat member 42 is attached to the seat frame 41, and has a seatportion 421, and a backrest portion 422 extending upwardly from a rearedge of the seat portion 421 and connected to the rear link 402.

The leg support 5 includes a leg frame 51 that has left and right secondarms 501 which are connected pivotally and respectively to the left andright first arms 401 at the vicinity of the front end of the seat frame41, and a leg rest member 52 attached to the leg frame 51. Each of thesecond arms 501 has a pivotal end 510. The leg support 5 furtherincludes a connecting bar 513 interconnecting the second arms 501opposite to the pivotal ends 510 of the second arms 501. The leg support5 is movable between a folded position and an unfolded position. In thefolded position, the leg rest member 52 is superimposed on the seatportion 421 of the seat member 42. In the unfolded position, the legrest member 52 extends forwardly from the seat portion 421 of the seatmember 42.

In this embodiment, each of the second arms 501 is telescopic, andincludes an outer tube 512 having a locking hole 515, an inner rod 511inserted telescopically into the outer tube 512 and having a throughhole 516, and a locking unit 514. The inner rod 511 has the pivotal end510 connected pivotally to the respective one of the first arms 401.Junctures between the pivotal ends 510 of the second arms 501 and thefirst arms 401 are formed rearwardly of the front link 403. The lockingunit 514 is disposed within the inner tube 511, and functions to lockthe outer tube 512 against movement relative to the inner rod 511. Thelocking unit 514 includes a projection 517 extending through the throughhole 516, and a biasing member 518 for biasing the projection 517outwardly in a conventional manner.

The seat member 42 and the leg rest member 52 are formed as a unitarybody which includes a flexible fabric 6 attached to both of the seatmember 42 and the leg rest member 52.

When the leg support 5 is folded, as shown in FIG. 2, a user can sit onthe leg rest member 52 with his/her back resting on the backrest portion422 and with his/her feet extending downwardly and freely.

When the leg support 5 is unfolded, as shown in FIG. 5, the leg restmember 52 is pivoted forwardly from the seat portion 421 of the seatmember 42 so that the seat portion 421 and the leg rest member 52 liesubstantially at the same level. At this time, a portion 61 of thefabric 6 is folded on the front link 403, and the inner rods 511 of thesecond arms 501 abut against and are supported on the top surface of thefront link 403.

Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, the leg support 5 is further movable fromthe unfolded position to an extended position, in which the leg restmember 52 extends farther forwardly from the seat portion 421, and thefolded portion 61 of the fabric 6 is stretched. The outer tube 512 ofeach second arm 501 is pulled outwardly relative to the inner rod 511 ofthe corresponding second arm 501 until the locking hole 515 is alignedwith the through hole 516. Through the biasing action of the biasingmember 518, the projection 517 extends through the through hole 516 andengages the locking hole 515, thereby restricting movement of the outertube 512 relative to the inner rod 511, and thereby positioning the legsupport 5 in the extended position.

Referring to FIG. 8, the left leg support 5 is shown in the unfoldedposition to illustrate that the lower leg portions of the user can besupported on the leg rest member 52, and the right leg support 5 isshown in the extended position to illustrate that the lower leg portionsof a taller user can also be comfortably supported on the leg restmember 52.

Contraction and folding of the leg support 5 is accomplished by firstpressing the projections 517 inwardly so as to release engagementbetween the projections 517 and the locking holes 515. The outer tube512 can then be sleeved more fully onto the inner rod 511. The leg restmember 52 is then pivoted toward the seat member 42 so as to superimposeon the seat portion 421 of the seat member 42.

It should be noted that the chair units 4 may be increased or decreasedin number, the backrest portion 422 may be adjustable relative to theseat portion 421, and the top portion of the swing support frame 1 maybe installed with a cover unit (not shown) for providing shade fromsunlight and rain. Furthermore, the application of the chair unit 4 ofthe present invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiment, andmay be applicable to a rocking chair, a leisure chair, etc.

While the present invention has been described in connection with whatis considered the most practical and preferred embodiment, it isunderstood that this invention is not limited to the disclosedembodiment but is intended to cover various arrangements included withinthe spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompassall such modifications and equivalent arrangements.

1. A chair assembly comprising: a chair unit including a seat framehaving front and rear ends, and left and right first arms extending fromsaid front to rear end; a seat member attached to said seat frame; and aleg support including a leg frame that has left and right second armswhich are connected pivotally and respectively to said left and rightfirst arms at the vicinity of said front end, and a leg rest memberattached to said leg frame, said leg support being movable between afolded position, in which said leg rest member is superimposed on saidseat member, and an unfolded position, in which said leg rest memberextends forwardly from said seat member.
 2. The chair assembly asclaimed in claim 1, wherein said seat frame further includes a rear linkinterconnecting said first arms, said first arms extending upwardly fromsaid front end toward said rear end and being connected to said rearlink at the vicinity of said rear end, said seat member having abackrest portion connected to said rear link.
 3. The chair assembly asclaimed in claim 2, wherein each of said second arms has a pivotal endconnected pivotally to the respective one of said first arms, said legsupport further including a connecting bar interconnecting said secondarms opposite to said pivotal ends of said second arms.
 4. The chairassembly as claimed in claim 3, wherein said seat member and said legrest member are formed as a unitary body which includes a flexiblefabric attached to both of said seat frame and said leg support.
 5. Thechair assembly as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of said second armsis telescopic, and includes an outer tube, and an inner rod insertedtelescopically into said outer tube, said inner rod having said pivotalend connected pivotally to the respective one of said first arms.
 6. Thechair assembly as claimed in claim 5, further comprising a locking unitto lock said outer tube against movement relative to said inner rod. 7.The chair assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein said seat member andsaid leg rest member lie substantially at the same level when said legsupport is in said unfolded position.
 8. The chair assembly as claimedin claim 1, further comprising a swing support frame, and a swingingunit hung on said swing support frame, said seat frame being connectedto said swinging unit.